Church of Scientology in Stuttgart

German Scientologist Wins Unlawful Dismissal Case from Munich Art Museum

Church of Scientology in Stuttgart
Church of Scientology in Stuttgart
Museum agreed to compensate him with a €110,000 severance and a pension

A case filed by a German Scientologist, fired two years ago from his position at the Haus Der Kunst Museum in Munich, has come to a close. The courts have upheld religious freedom as protected by the German Constitution (known as the German Basic Law).

German Scientologist Wins Unlawful Dismissal Case from Munich Art Museum[/tweetthis]

In March 2017, the man, who had served as the Haus Der Kunst personnel director for 22 years, sued the museum for wrongful dismissal. German media reported that local politicians and the Bavarian Office for the Protection of the Constitution (OPC) exerted pressure on the museum’s executive branch to fire the Scientologist.

In November 2017, Munich Labor Court ruled the museum employee was entitled to full protection against unlawful dismissal based on his religion.

The House of Art appealed the case, but in July 2018, the State Labor Court of Appeal rejected the appeal.

On April 3, 2019, after reviewing the museum’s arguments, the Munich Labor Court found the reasons for the employee’s dismissal were unlawful and ordered the parties to settle. The Haus Der Kunst agreed to pay the Scientologist €110,000 in severance and a pension worth several hundred thousand more.

According to ScientologyReligion.org, German courts have handed down some 50 decisions affirming the rights of the Church of Scientology and Scientologists.

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